“The shelter will be built on the Noormarkku factory grounds, in a spot I have pointed out to my wife and children. It is to have its own doctor, with funds being of no concern.” (Excerpt from Antti Ahlström’s will / Norrmén 19271)

As early as the 1870s, Antti and Eva Ahlström founded a fund for the sick and the poor. As specified in Antti Ahlström’s will, the company built a shelter for the sick and poor elderly in 1903. The shelter remained active until 1953.

The Eva Ahlström Hospital was completed in 1912, built with donation money from Eva Ahlström to honour her 60th birthday. The hospital was established during the creation of the nationwide municipal hospital network. By the early 20th century, Finland had about 20 municipal hospitals. By 1931, the number of hospitals had risen to almost a hundred.

Originally equipped with 27 beds, the hospital was very modern by the standards of the period, featuring central heating and plumbing. In 1925, the hospital acquired an X-ray device from Germany at the behest of its doctor, Aleksis Tefke. Only a few Finnish hospitals had the same level of X-ray equipment.

In 1937, the hospital improved local maternal care by instituting monthly maternal check-ups. The hospital expanded in 1953 when the shelter was converted into a maternity ward. In 1960, the hospital became the property of the joint municipalities of Noormarkku, Pomarkku, and Ahlainen.